Free Blood Legacy: Adult Urban Fantasy (The V V Inn Book 5) by C.J. Ellisson Page B

“Should I quote a popular song and remind you that what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger?”
    “Or crazy,” Rafe says with a wicked smile. “Or maybe a little of both.”
    “Seriously, though,” Jon says, “it was dark and depressing. After the first journal, I couldn’t read anymore. I don’t know how you survived to become the person you are.”
    I look away, unwilling to allow any of my past to crowd my mind and drag me back to the edge of darkness again. “I did survive. So let’s move on.”
    “Well, that’s where I read the phrase ‘never turn a witch.’ It was in a section where Mikov explained some rules of existence you’d needed to know as a newly changed vampire.”
    I nod to indicate I understand, but I’m glad I can’t recall the original conversation any longer. I wrote those entries almost twenty years after the events occurred, which was still over five hundred years ago, and I’d rather not revisit them for anything in the world. I look to Rafe, hoping he can change the topic and save me from further discussion of my early years.

CHAPTER ELEVEN
    Rafe
    I see the expression in Dria’s eyes and on her delicate face. She’s struggling to maintain a hold on the present. Having her slip back into those dark memories would not be good for any of us while we’re in a public place. Not that I think she’d hurt anyone, but if I can spare her pain of any kind I will.
    “Okay,” I say, “now we know where you read it—let’s move on to what we’re going to do next and how we can find more information.”
    Jon looks like he’d like to discuss the journals more, but after a glance at me and Dria he nods once and settles back in his chair, content to let the topic drop for now.
    “Rolando, when we finally find him, might have the answers we need regarding the phrase,” Dria says, her voice steady with no trace of the distress I read in her eyes a moment ago. “Or maybe I can contact someone at the Tribunal and ask.”
    I reach for my wine glass. “Have they been forthcoming with this type information in the past?” I take a sip, examining the small plates stacked on the table, debating to search for more food.
    Dria raises a hand, signaling the waiter for additional plates to be brought. “You know how they are. Some days they will talk to you… other days they shut you out completely.”
    “During my stakeouts, I witnessed the protocols we’ve dealt with for years at the Tribunal abandoned. No one is manning the phones—I called a half a dozen times. Non-vampires are not permitted in the house at night, with the exception of bonded mates. I didn’t seen any blood donors like we saw at the party, either. It’s like the whole place is in lock-down mode, functioning on a skeleton crew under strict orders.”
    The waiter brings six more plates filled with delectable food. Jon reaches for two, saying, “What about Justin? You said you’d tracked where he lives. I think we should start with him.”
    I nod, grabbing two plates for myself, he’s echoing what I’ve been saying all night.
    “I still feel Rolando should be our main target, not the wizard,” Dria says, squirming in her seat. I bet her hunger is rising again, and not the one for blood. I stifle a smile at what that means for me.
    “I agree, darling. Eventually he will be the one we need the most, yes, but maybe Justin can lead us to him.”
    “Why would that bastard care?” my volatile wife hisses. “He was the one who helped them catch me in the first place.”
    I settle a hand over hers, attempting to send calming energy to her. “He did what he was paid to do, having no idea what they planned when taking you. I’ve told you, he was the one who helped me locate you in the underground warren of rooms. I could have searched for hours and never found you before the sun set. And by then I would have been dead.
    “I trust him. Not with my life or yours, but I do trust he won’t deliberately try and sell us out